Multi-party payment object oriented system and method

ABSTRACT

The present invention involves a server for accommodating multiple payments in an e-commerce transaction. The server includes a processor with a communications device and software modules. The vendor software module is adapted to receive payment requirements from a vendor via the communications device, and also to receive payment parameters from an initiator. The payment parameters include an item payment amount and an identification of at least one contributor. The contributor software module is adapted to obtain payment information from at least one of the initiator and the contributors wherein the payment information is sufficient to authorize the commitment of funds to a transaction. The aggregation software module is adapted to send participation messages via the communications device to at least one contributor. The participation messages include information on the item, the item payment amount, and directions for the contributor to interact with the contributor module. Further, the aggregation software module maintains a total of committed funds and initiates a payment transaction when the committed funds are sufficient to pay the vendor the item payment amount.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The invention relates to e-commerce payment system software. Morespecifically, the field of the invention is that of e-commerce paymentsystem software for network based transactions.

2. Description of the Related Art

The internet is being used by individuals to purchase products onlineprimarily through e-commerce sites. An individual purchases and pays forthe selected product or service, typically using a shopping cart of theselling website. The shopping cart collects the individual'sinformation, including both payment and delivery information. Once thepayment information is validated and the transaction processed,typically through the use of a credit card, the delivery information isused to actually send the product or deliver the services. In the caseof a gift, the individual providing the payment information may supplyanother person's delivery information.

While the typical internet e-commerce transaction involves a creditcard, further web sites have been developed that provide for paymentsthrough other mechanisms, such as direct bank transfer (e.g., AutomatedClearing House transactions, or ACH) or through an online payment system(e.g., PayPal). To expand the role of e-commerce and to develop newrevenue streams for existing e-commerce sites, new payment systems aredesired.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is an internet based system and method whichprovide a process and system for allowing more than one individual tocontribute to the payment of one product as a joint/shared purchase.Briefly stated, the initiating party for a transaction specifies one ormore contributors for paying for the transaction. The system accordingto one embodiment of the invention sends invitations to participate inthe purchase of the item for the designated individual. The invitationsmay be sent by phone, text message, instant messaging, e-mail, or othersuitable transmission, and may include a key or other descriptoridentifying the joint/shared purchase product. The initiating party mayhold the joint/shared purchase product, e.g., by committing points tothe purchase. The system accumulates payment commitments until thenecessary amount of funds are obtained, then the system processes thepurchase.

In one embodiment, the invention relates to a server for accommodatingmultiple party payments for a single item in an e-commerce transaction.The server includes a processor with a communications device andparticular software modules. The vendor software module obtains orreceives payment requirements from a vendor via the communicationsdevice. The vendor software module further obtains or receives paymentparameters from an initiator via the communications device. The paymentparameters include an item payment amount and an identification of atleast one contributor. The contributor software module obtains orreceives payment information from at least one of the initiator and thecontributor wherein the payment information is sufficient to authorizethe commitment of points to a transaction. The aggregation softwaremodule sends a participation message via the communications device to atleast one contributor. The participation message includes information onthe item, the item payment amount, and directions for the contributor tointeract with the contributor software module. The aggregation softwaremodule further maintains a total of committed points and initiates apayment transaction when the committed points are sufficient to pay thevendor the item payment amount.

In further embodiments, the vendor software module further includes acontributor designator software module for collecting a plurality ofcontributor identifiers. The contributor identifiers include at leasttwo of: a telephone number, a website user name, a social network username, a user identifier from a known computer system, a financialinstitution account identifier, a rewards program identifier, and afrequent flyer program identifier. The contributor software modulefurther includes communication software module for communicating withthe contributors through at least two of the following communicationschannels: a local computer network, a wireless network, a wide areanetwork, a wireless network, an electronic telephony network, radio,microwave, other telecommunications, a conventional voice telephonynetwork, a retail outlet, and a paper based communication. Thecontributor software module further an includes individual messagesoftware module that allows the initiator to enter an individual messagefor at least one contributor. The aggregation software module furtherincludes monitor software module for displaying the current status ofeach contributor. The aggregation software module further allows aninitiator to send a message to one of the contributors. The aggregationsoftware module further includes software for automatically sendingreminder messages to one of the contributors according to apredetermined criteria.

In a further embodiment of the invention, the contributor softwaremodule provides software for enabling a contributor to become aninitiator and promulgate further participation messages to furtherpotential contributors. This allows a network effect for expanding thenumber of possible participants to much more than the original list ofpotential contributors. In situations where a finite amount ofcontributions in not necessary, for example a gift certificate orcharity fund raiser, the initiator need not specify a definite paymentamount. In fact, such situations may not even have a time limitation,for example a charity fund raising campaign. In this way, obtainingfunds may be accomplished with contributors from multiple sources andachieve great success even though the initial contributor list may belimited. Further, the fundraising organization may reach out to newindividuals that are introduced by the initiator, and the monitorsoftware may further include software for indentifying new individualsas well as deplication software to identifying duplicate contacts from anew contributor turned initiator.

In a further embodiment of the invention, a network of merchant vendorsutilizes the server. In this embodiment, multiple vendors participate ina points based exchange, so that the potential contributors may useaggregated points for one or more of the plurality of vendors. Thisallows initiators to accumulate points for a purchase with one or moreof such vendors without having to deposit actual monetary funds with abanking institution. Further, should fund raising for a particularpurchase or project fall short, the points may be redeployed withanother vendor in the network of merchant vendors or remitted back tothe contributors seamlessly.

Further aspects of the embodiments of the invention relate to the methodof operation of such server and software, and a computer readable mediastoring instructions for performing such a method.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above mentioned and other features and objects of this invention,and the manner of attaining them, will become more apparent and theinvention itself will be better understood by reference to the followingdescription of an embodiment of the invention taken in conjunction withthe accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a flow chart diagram of the operation of the present inventionrelating to one embodiment of the multiple party payment system.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagrammatic view of a multiple party paymentsystem using the present invention.

FIG. 3A is a schematic diagrammatic view of a network system in whichembodiments of the present invention may be utilized; and

FIG. 3B is a block diagram of a computing system (either a server orclient, or both, as appropriate), with optional input devices (e.g.,keyboard, mouse, touch screen, etc.) and output devices, hardware,network connections, one or more processors, and memory/storage for dataand modules, etc. which may be utilized in conjunction with embodimentsof the present invention.

Corresponding reference characters indicate corresponding partsthroughout the several views. Although the drawings representembodiments of the present invention, the drawings are not necessarilyto scale and certain features may be exaggerated in order to betterillustrate and explain the present invention. The flow charts and screenshots are also representative in nature, and actual embodiments of theinvention may include further features or steps not shown in thedrawings. The exemplification set out herein illustrates an embodimentof the invention, in one form, and such exemplifications are not to beconstrued as limiting the scope of the invention in any manner.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

The embodiment disclosed below is not intended to be exhaustive or limitthe invention to the precise form disclosed in the following detaileddescription. Rather, the embodiment is chosen and described so thatothers skilled in the art may utilize its teachings.

The detailed descriptions which follow are presented in part in terms ofalgorithms and symbolic representations of operations on data bitswithin a computer memory representing alphanumeric characters or otherinformation. A computer generally includes a processor for executinginstructions and memory for storing instructions and data. When ageneral purpose computer has a series of machine encoded instructionsstored in its memory, the computer operating on such encodedinstructions may become a specific type of machine, namely a computerparticularly configured to perform the operations embodied by the seriesof instructions. Some of the instructions may be adapted to producesignals that control operation of other machines and thus may operatethrough those control signals to transform materials far removed fromthe computer itself. These descriptions and representations are themeans used by those skilled in the art of data processing arts to mosteffectively convey the substance of their work to others skilled in theart.

An algorithm is here, and generally, conceived to be a self consistentsequence of steps leading to a desired result. These steps are thoserequiring physical manipulations of physical quantities. Usually, thoughnot necessarily, these quantities take the form of electrical ormagnetic pulses or signals capable of being stored, transferred,transformed, combined, compared, and otherwise manipulated. It provesconvenient at times, principally for reasons of common usage, to referto these signals as bits, values, symbols, characters, display data,terms, numbers, or the like as a reference to the physical items ormanifestations in which such signals are embodied or expressed. Itshould be borne in mind, however, that all of these and similar termsare to be associated with the appropriate physical quantities and aremerely used here as convenient labels applied to these quantities.

Some algorithms may use data structures for both inputting informationand producing the desired result. Data structures greatly facilitatedata management by data processing systems, and are not accessibleexcept through sophisticated software systems. Data structures are notthe information content of a memory, rather they represent specificelectronic structural elements which impart or manifest a physicalorganization on the information stored in memory. More than mereabstraction, the data structures are specific electrical or magneticstructural elements in memory which simultaneously represent complexdata accurately, often data modeling physical characteristics of relateditems, and provide increased efficiency in computer operation.

Further, the manipulations performed are often referred to in terms,such as comparing or adding, commonly associated with mental operationsperformed by a human operator. No such capability of a human operator isnecessary, or desirable in most cases, in any of the operationsdescribed herein which form part of the present invention; theoperations are machine operations. Useful machines for performing theoperations of the present invention include general purpose digitalcomputers or other similar devices. In all cases the distinction betweenthe method operations in operating a computer and the method ofcomputation itself should be recognized. The present invention relatesto a method and apparatus for operating a computer in processingelectrical or other (e.g., mechanical, chemical) physical signals togenerate other desired physical manifestations or signals. The computeroperates on software modules, which are collections of signals stored ona media that represents a series of machine instructions that enable thecomputer processor to perform the machine instructions that implementthe algorithmic steps. Such machine instructions may be the actualcomputer code the processor interprets to implement the instructions, oralternatively may be a higher level coding of the instructions that isinterpreted to obtain the actual computer code. The software module mayalso include a hardware component, wherein some aspects of the algorithmare performed by the circuitry itself rather as a result of ainstruction.

The present invention also relates to an apparatus for performing theseoperations. This apparatus may be specifically constructed for therequired purposes or it may comprise a general purpose computer asselectively activated or reconfigured by a computer program stored inthe computer. The algorithms presented herein are not inherently relatedto any particular computer or other apparatus unless explicitlyindicated as requiring particular hardware. In some cases, the computerprograms may communicate or relate to other programs or equipmentsthrough signals configured to particular protocols which may or may notrequire specific hardware or programming to interact. In particular,various general purpose machines may be used with programs written inaccordance with the teachings herein, or it may prove more convenient toconstruct more specialized apparatus to perform the required methodsteps. The required structure for a variety of these machines willappear from the description below.

The present invention may deal with “object oriented” software, andparticularly with an “object oriented” operating system. The “objectoriented” software is organized into “objects”, each comprising a blockof computer instructions describing various procedures (“methods”) to beperformed in response to “messages” sent to the object or “events” whichoccur with the object. Such operations include, for example, themanipulation of variables, the activation of an object by an externalevent, and the transmission of one or more messages to other objects.

Messages are sent and received between objects having certain functionsand knowledge to carry out processes. Messages are generated in responseto user instructions, for example, by a user activating an icon with a“mouse” pointer generating an event. Also, messages may be generated byan object in response to the receipt of a message. When one of theobjects receives a message, the object carries out an operation (amessage procedure) corresponding to the message and, if necessary,returns a result of the operation. Each object has a region whereinternal states (instance variables) of the object itself are stored andwhere the other objects are not allowed to access. One feature of theobject oriented system is inheritance. For example, an object fordrawing a “circle” on a display may inherit functions and knowledge fromanother object for drawing a “shape” on a display.

A programmer “programs” in an object oriented programming language bywriting individual blocks of code each of which creates an object bydefining its methods. A collection of such objects adapted tocommunicate with one another by means of messages comprises an objectoriented program. Object oriented computer programming facilitates themodeling of interactive systems in that each component of the system canbe modeled with an object, the behavior of each component beingsimulated by the methods of its corresponding object, and theinteractions between components being simulated by messages transmittedbetween objects.

An operator may stimulate a collection of interrelated objectscomprising an object oriented program by sending a message to one of theobjects. The receipt of the message may cause the object to respond bycarrying out predetermined functions which may include sendingadditional messages to one or more other objects. The other objects mayin turn carry out additional functions in response to the messages theyreceive, including sending still more messages. In this manner,sequences of message and response may continue indefinitely or may cometo an end when all messages have been responded to and no new messagesare being sent. When modeling systems utilizing an object orientedlanguage, a programmer need only think in terms of how each component ofa modeled system responds to a stimulus and not in terms of the sequenceof operations to be performed in response to some stimulus. Suchsequence of operations naturally flows out of the interactions betweenthe objects in response to the stimulus and need not be preordained bythe programmer.

Although object oriented programming makes simulation of systems ofinterrelated components more intuitive, the operation of an objectoriented program is often difficult to understand because the sequenceof operations carried out by an object oriented program is usually notimmediately apparent from a software listing as in the case forsequentially organized programs. Nor is it easy to determine how anobject oriented program works through observation of the readilyapparent manifestations of its operation. Most of the operations carriedout by a computer in response to a program are “invisible” to anobserver since only a relatively few steps in a program typicallyproduce an observable computer output.

In the following description, several terms which are used frequentlyhave specialized meanings in the present context. The term “object”relates to a set of computer instructions and associated data which canbe activated directly or indirectly by the user. The terms “windowingenvironment”, “running in windows”, and “object oriented operatingsystem” are used to denote a computer user interface in whichinformation is manipulated and displayed on a video display such aswithin bounded regions on a raster scanned video display. The terms“network”, “local area network”, “LAN”, “wide area network”, or “WAN”mean two or more computers which are connected in such a manner thatmessages may be transmitted between the computers. In such computernetworks, typically one or more computers operate as a “server”, acomputer with large storage devices such as hard disk drives andcommunication hardware to operate peripheral devices such as printers ormodems. Other computers, termed “workstations”, provide a user interfaceso that users of computer networks can access the network resources,such as shared data files, common peripheral devices, and interworkstation communication. Users activate computer programs or networkresources to create “processes” which include both the general operationof the computer program along with specific operating characteristicsdetermined by input variables and its environment. Similar to a processis an agent (sometimes called an intelligent agent), which is a processthat gathers information or performs some other service without userintervention and on some regular schedule. Typically, an agent, usingparameters typically provided by the user, searches locations either onthe host machine or at some other point on a network, gathers theinformation relevant to the purpose of the agent, and presents it to theuser on a periodic basis.

The term “desktop” means a specific user interface which presents a menuor display of objects with associated settings for the user associatedwith the desktop. When the desktop accesses a network resource, whichtypically requires an application program to execute on the remoteserver, the desktop calls an Application Program Interface, or “API”, toallow the user to provide commands to the network resource and observeany output. The term “Browser” refers to a program which is notnecessarily apparent to the user, but which is responsible fortransmitting messages between the desktop and the network server and fordisplaying and interacting with the network user. Browsers are designedto utilize a communications protocol for transmission of text andgraphic information over a world wide network of computers, namely the“World Wide Web” or simply the “Web”. Examples of Browsers compatiblewith the present invention include the Internet Explorer program sold byMicrosoft Corporation (Internet Explorer is a trademark of MicrosoftCorporation), the Opera Browser program created by Opera Software ASA,or the Firefox browser program distributed by the Mozilla Foundation(Firefox is a registered trademark of the Mozilla Foundation). Althoughthe following description details such operations in terms of a graphicuser interface of a Browser, the present invention may be practiced withtext based interfaces, or even with voice or visually activatedinterfaces, that have many of the functions of a graphic based Browser.

Browsers display information which is formatted in a StandardGeneralized Markup Language (“SGML”) or a HyperText Markup Language(“HTML”), both being scripting languages which embed non visual codes ina text document through the use of special ASCII text codes. Files inthese formats may be easily transmitted across computer networks,including global information networks like the Internet, and allow theBrowsers to display text, images, and play audio and video recordings.The Web utilizes these data file formats to conjunction with itscommunication protocol to transmit such information between servers andworkstations. Browsers may also be programmed to display informationprovided in an eXtensible Markup Language (“XML”) file, with XML filesbeing capable of use with several Document Type Definitions (“DTD”) andthus more general in nature than SGML or HTML. The XML file may beanalogized to an object, as the data and the stylesheet formatting areseparately contained (formatting may be thought of as methods ofdisplaying information, thus an XML file has data and an associatedmethod).

The terms “personal digital assistant” or “PDA”, as defined above, meansany handheld, mobile device that combines computing, telephone, fax,e-mail and networking features. The terms “wireless wide area network”or “WWAN” mean a wireless network that serves as the medium for thetransmission of data between a handheld device and a computer. The term“synchronization” means the exchanging of information between a firstdevice, e.g. a handheld device, and a second device, e.g. a desktopcomputer, either via wires or wirelessly. Synchronization ensures thatthe data on both devices are identical (at least at the time ofsynchronization).

In wireless wide area networks, communication primarily occurs throughthe transmission of radio signals over analog, digital cellular, orpersonal communications service (“PCS”) networks. Signals may also betransmitted through microwaves and other electromagnetic waves. At thepresent time, most wireless data communication takes place acrosscellular systems using second generation technology such ascode-division multiple access (“CDMA”), time division multiple access(“TDMA”), the Global System for Mobile Communications (“GSM”), ThirdGeneration (wideband or “3G”), Fourth Generation (broadband or “4G”),personal digital cellular (“PDC”), or through packet-data technologyover analog systems such as cellular digital packet data (“CDPD”) usedon the Advance Mobile Phone Service (“AMPS”).

The terms “wireless application protocol” or “WAP” mean a universalspecification to facilitate the delivery and presentation of web-baseddata on handheld and mobile devices with small user interfaces. “MobileSoftware” refers to the software operating system which allows forapplication programs to be implemented on a mobile device such as amobile telephone or PDA. Examples of Mobile Software are Java® and JavaME® (Java and JavaME are trademarks of Sun Microsystems, Inc. of SantaClara, Calif.), BREW® (BREW is a registered trademark of QualcommIncorporated of San Diego, Calif.), Windows Mobile® (Windows is aregistered trademark of Microsoft Corporation of Redmond, Wash.), PalmOS® (Palm is a registered trademark of Palm, Inc. of Sunnyvale, Calif.),Symbian OS® (Symbian is a registered trademark of Symbian SoftwareLimited Corporation of London, United Kingdom), ANDROID OS® (ANDROID isa registered trademark of Google, Inc. of Mountain View, Calif.), andiPhone OS® (iPhone is a registered trademark of Apple, Inc. ofCupertino, Calif.). “Mobile Apps” refers to software programs writtenfor execution with Mobile Software.

In the following specification, the term “social network” may be used torefer to a multiple user computer software system that allows forrelationships among and between users (individuals or members) andcontent assessable by the system. Generally, a social network is definedby the relationships among groups of individuals, and may includerelationships ranging from casual acquaintances to close familial bonds.In addition, members may be other entities that may be linked withindividuals. The logical structure of a social network may berepresented using a graph structure. Each node of the graph maycorrespond to a member of the social network, or content assessable bythe social network. Edges connecting two nodes represent a relationshipbetween two individuals. In addition, the degree of separation betweenany two nodes is defined as the minimum number of hops required totraverse the graph from one node to the other. A degree of separationbetween two members is a measure of relatedness between the two members.

Social networks may comprise any of a variety of suitable arrangements.An entity or member of a social network may have a profile and thatprofile may represent the member in the social network. The socialnetwork may facilitate interaction between member profiles and allowassociations or relationships between member profiles. Associationsbetween member profiles may be one or more of a variety of types, suchas friend, co-worker, family member, business associate, common-interestassociation, and common-geography association. Associations may alsoinclude intermediary relationships, such as friend of a friend, anddegree of separation relationships, such as three degrees away.Associations between member profiles may be reciprocal associations. Forexample, a first member may invite another member to become associatedwith the first member and the other member may accept or reject theinvitation. A member may also categorize or weigh the association withother member profiles, such as, for example, by assigning a level to theassociation. For example, for a friendship-type association, the membermay assign a level, such as acquaintance, friend, good friend, and bestfriend, to the associations between the member's profile and othermember profiles.

Each profile within a social network may contain entries, and each entrymay comprise information associated with a profile. Examples of entriesfor a person profile may comprise contact information such as an emailaddresses, mailing address, instant messaging (or IM) name, or phonenumber; personal information such as relationship status, birth date,age, children, ethnicity, religion, political view, sense of humor,sexual orientation, fashion preferences, smoking habits, drinkinghabits, pets, hometown location, passions, sports, activities, favoritebooks, music, TV, or movie preferences, favorite cuisines; professionalinformation such as skills, career, or job description; photographs of aperson or other graphics associated with an entity; or any otherinformation or documents describing, identifying, or otherwiseassociated with a profile. Entries for a business profile may compriseindustry information such as market sector, customer base, location, orsupplier information; financial information such as net profits, networth, number of employees, stock performance; or other types ofinformation and documents associated with the business profile.

A member profile may also contain rating information associated with themember. For example, the member may be rated or scored by other membersof the social network in specific categories, such as humor,intelligence, fashion, trustworthiness, sexiness, and coolness. Amember's category ratings may be contained in the member's profile. Inone embodiment of the social network, a member may have fans. Fans maybe other members who have indicated that they are “fans” of the member.Rating information may also include the number of fans of a member andidentifiers of the fans. Rating information may also include the rate atwhich a member accumulated ratings or fans and how recently the memberhas been rated or acquired fans.

A member profile may also contain social network activity dataassociated with the member. Membership information may includeinformation about a member's login patterns to the social network, suchas the frequency that the member logs in to the social network and themember's most recent login to the social network. Membership informationmay also include information about the rate and frequency that a memberprofile gains associations to other member profiles. In a social networkthat comprises advertising or sponsorship, a member profile may containconsumer information. Consumer information may include the frequency,patterns, types, or number of purchases the member makes, or informationabout which advertisers or sponsors the member has accessed, patronized,or used.

A member profile may comprise data stored in memory. The profile, inaddition to comprising data about the member, may also comprise datarelating to others. For example, a member profile may contain anidentification of associations or virtual links with other memberprofiles. In one embodiment, a member's social network profile maycomprise a hyperlink associated with another member's profile. In onesuch association, the other member's profile may contain a reciprocalhyperlink associated with the first member's profile. A member's profilemay also contain information excerpted from another associated member'sprofile, such as a thumbnail image of the associated member, his or herage, marital status, and location, as well as an indication of thenumber of members with which the associated member is associated. In oneembodiment, a member's profile may comprise a list of other socialnetwork members' profiles with which the member wishes to be associated.

An association may be designated manually or automatically. For example,a member may designate associated members manually by selecting otherprofiles and indicating an association that may be recorded in themember's profile. According to one embodiment, associations may beestablished by an invitation and an acceptance of the invitation. Forexample, a first user may send an invitation to a second user invitingthe second user to form an association with the first user. The seconduser may accept or reject the invitation. According to one embodiment,if the second user rejects the invitation, a one-way association may beformed between the first user and the second user. According to anotherembodiment, if the second user rejects the association, no associationmay be formed between the two users. Also, an association between twoprofiles may comprise an association automatically generated in responseto a predetermined number of common entries, aspects, or elements in thetwo members' profiles. In one embodiment, a member profile may beassociated with all of the other member profiles comprising apredetermined number or percentage of common entries, such as interests,hobbies, likes, dislikes, employers and/or habits. Associationsdesignated manually by members of the social network, or associationsdesignated automatically based on data input by one or more members ofthe social network, may be referred to as user established associations.

Examples of social networks include, but are not limited to, facebook,twitter, myspace, linkedin, and other systems. The exact terminology ofcertain features, such as associations, fans, profiles, etc. may varyfrom social network to social network, although there are severalfunctional features that are common to the various terms. Thus, aparticular social network may have more of less of the common featuresdescribed above. In terms of the following disclosure, generally the useof the term “social network” encompasses a system that includes one ormore of the foregoing features or their equivalents.

The transactions involved with the various embodiments of the presentinvention start with a first party selecting a product or service topurchase (we shall refer to this product or service as the “Item”) froman e-commerce vendor (“Vender”). We may refer to this first party as the“Initiator” of the transaction. The Initiator then identifies additionalparties (“Contributors”) to participate in the payment for the selectedItem, and provides the list of Contributors to the multiple partypayment system (the Pay As One system, or “PAO”). PAO then contactsContributors to attempt to secure sufficient payment commitments for theItem, for example by collecting funds or reserving funds of theContributions accounts. Once PAO obtains sufficient payment commitmentsfrom the Initiator and/or Contributors, PAO completes the paymenttransaction by obtaining the required transaction information from theInitiator and/or Contributors then providing those funds to the Vendor.Alternatively, the Initiator may decide to cancel the transaction, atwhich point PAO releases the funds so that neither the Initiator norContributors provide funds to the Vendor.

Briefly described in FIG. 1, embodiments of the present inventioninvolve methods that allow the Initiator to select an Item with PAO asthe payment mechanism in step 102. In step 104, the Initiator identifiesContributors to PAO. PAO then invites Contributors to participate in thepayment of the total cost of the Item, coordinating the payment from theContributors to the Vendor in step 106 where PAO secures payments forthe Contributors, e.g. by obtaining and holding funds or reservingfunds, e.g., on a credit facility of each Contributor. Finally, oncesufficient funds have been secured, PAO processes Contributor paymentsand to send funds to the Vendor in step 108.

FIG. 2 schematically shows such an arrangement in one embodiment of theinvention. Initiator 202 may use computer 210 to access e-commerce site204 over the Internet, through a social network, or other communicationchannel. When selecting a payment option, e-commerce site 204 isconfigured to offer PAO 206 as a payment option. Initiator 202 may thusaccess PAO 206 via computer 210 and a suitable communication channel toidentify Contributors 208. In one embodiment, Contributors 208 areidentified by e-mail address. In other embodiments, Contributors 208 maybe identified by phone number, website or social network name, userID ona known system, a financial account identifier, a rewards programidentifier, a frequent flyer program identifier, or other facility thatmay allow PAO 206 to access Contributors 208 through CommunicationChannels 211. Communications Channels 211 may include local computernetworks, social networks implemented on any platform, wirelessnetworks, wide area wired and wireless networks, electronic telephony,radio, microwave, other telecommunications, or conventional voicetelephony, retail outlets, or paper based communication. In oneembodiment, PAO 206 sends a description of the Item in the communicationto Contributors 208. In another embodiment, PAO 206 sends a link ortoken representing the Item to each Contributor 208. PAO may communicatewith the various Contributors 208 through communications channels 212until sufficient payments are secured, at which point PAO 206communicates with e-commerce site 204 to complete the transactionstarted by Initiator 202. Alternatively, Initiator 202 may decide toterminate the transaction, in which case PAO 206 does not complete thefunds transfer and thus the transaction is not completed. In oneembodiment, the payments commitments in the form of reserve holds areallowed to expire or are explicitly released so that no funds transferoccurs. In another embodiment, PAO 206 sends back funds that wereobtained as payment commitments.

To facilitate the progress of the transaction, PAO 206 typically chargesContributors 208's payment mechanisms and coverts the payments to asuitable quantity of points from the payment vendor. Such payment vendorpoints have an equivalent monetary value to the contributions when usedfor the contemplated transaction, and for many other transactionsavailable through the payment vendor. Thus, once sufficient funds in theform of points are accumulated, the Item may be purchased. If thetransaction is not completed, Contributors 208 have options for thedisposition of the points or may agree to allow Initiator 202 to disposeof the unused points. This allows Initiator 202 to have flexibility toscale back the cost of the Item if insufficient funds are developed, orto increase the cost of the Item if the interest from Contributors 208indicates greater amounts of funds may be generated. The use ofcommitted funds through conversion to points with a payment vendorallows several advantages. For example, unused or extra points may beused with the payment vendor and its associated merchants to purchaseother goods or services, or alternatively may be donated to a charity.PAO 206 may further serve as a hub for multiple payment vendors, so thatpoints may be redeployed and used in multiple situations.

In one embodiment, PAO 206 provides collection services for multiplepayment vendors allowing for the use of points with any of the merchantsassociated with any of the vendors. For example, one association orsocial network may affiliate with PAO 206 and allow PAO 206 to handleall the electronic donations or campaigns amongst its members. Pointsmay then be generated for both group purchases and/or donations and forother activities within the association or social network. Where apurchase is made through the association or social network, bonus pointsmay be assigned to the purchaser. When the purchaser is invited toparticipate in a group gift or donation, the purchaser/Contributor mayuse a combination of saved points and further funds to make thecommitment to the group gift/donation. In this embodiment, the amount ofpoints accumulated by each member may be accessed by the memberaccessing a user profile portion of PAO 206, and/or PAO 206 mayperiodically send members an e-mail with a current account balance. Inthis embodiment, in addition to members contributing points to groupgifts/donations, accumulated points may be transferred to others as anaward or donation. Optionally, potential contributors may be identifiedby a sub-group designation in an association, or a defined subset of asocial network (e.g., all the Initiator's friends, or all the fans of aparticular element of a social network). Additionally, other entities,e.g. an airline, may offer points as a promotion or reward where thosepoints may be redeemed in conjunction with a group gift/donation or withany merchants associated with PAO 206.

Each individual Contributor 208 typically has a separate electroniccommerce payment mechanism (e.g., payment vendor 205 which may representdifferent credit cards, ACH accounts, wire transfers, e-Cash, etc.), andPAO 206 obtains the total payment commitment from those multiple sourcesto deliver to the Item Vendor (in this exemplary embodiment e-commercesite 204). One example would be a situation where family members orfriends would like to share in the cost of one large flower arrangementfor the funeral of a friend. Initiator 202 may select a particularflower arrangement from a particular Vendor 204, select PAO 206 as thepayment option in the Vendor's shopping cart, then identify one or moreContributors 208 to fulfill the remaining cost of the Item. While anexemplary embodiment of the invention describes the Initiator as using acomputer as the initiating device, the initiating device may be a cellphone, smart phone, PDA, or other device. The initiation may be done inreal time, or may be processed and executed in batch style. Similarly,participation of Contributors 208 may be accomplished in real time orbatch style. However, as many Items may have a time sensitive purchasingcriteria, PAO 206 optionally has timing mechanisms and as close to realtime processing as possible to ease the time sensitive constraints, asdisclosed in further detail below.

The Initiator selects the flower arrangement as the Item, and the Itemis put in to a holding portion of a shopping cart awaiting check-out andpayment, as is typical of e-commerce sites. In one embodiment, the Itemis held by the shopping cart merchant upon the payment or commitment ofan initial deposit, typically a significant percentage of the totalcost. PAO 206 may be used with any of the variety of shopping carttechnologies, products or groups of products. At check out (for payment)the Initiator is provided the option of using the PayAsOne system'smulti-payer process, and the initial deposit may be handled in aconventional manner with only the Initiator being involved. However, insituations where the initial deposit is beyond the ability of theInitiator to fund, PAO 206 may still be used with the caveat that theItem would not be guaranteed available until the initial depositthreshold is established. PAO 206 may be activated by the Initiatoractivating an element on the display screen in the form of a logo orlink to the PayAsOne system on the shopping cart's check out page.Initiators selecting the PayAsOne option may thus request that others tocontribute to the total cost of the Item by making a partial payment ormicro-payment.

In one embodiment, funds are secured by a common credit card procedurewhere a designated amount is reserved once the Initiator or anyContributor commits funds. In this way, PAO maintains the funds onreserve and maintains the total of current contributed amounts.Typically, credit card companies maintain funds on reserve for about tendays before releasing the funds. In the case where the Initiator has atime constraint for participation by Contributors, if that timeconstraint is less than 10 days any reserved funds should be availableuntil the expiry of the invitation. In the case where the Initiator hasno time constraint, or a time constraint greater than the reserveperiod, PAO may include software to either renew the reserve or cancelthe Contributor's participation. Similar methods are available for otherpayment mechanisms, where a funding amount is held by the financialinstitution but committed to the transaction when the transaction isconsummated. In any of these methods, the Initiator may determine whenthe held or reserved funds are transferred and converted into points tobe used by PAO 206 to complete a transaction.

In addition to the time constraint, the Initiator may also includesuggested amounts of participation. In one embodiment of the invention,Contributors are limited to a select number of participation amounts. Inanother embodiment of the invention, a minimum payment is required. Forexample, in one embodiment $10 may be selected as the minimum payment,justified by transaction costs being too great a percentage of a lesserparticipation amount. In another embodiment of the invention,Contributors are sent an Invoice for the desired contribution amount. Itis not required that there be a defined limit to the amounts beingsolicited from the Contributors. For example, an Initiator may decide totry to purchase a gift certificate at a particular merchant vendor or aset of merchant vendors. By virtue of a point based system, the actualdeposit of monetary funds is not necessary as the points serve as acredit facility for the gift certificate until the points are redeemed.

In one embodiment, the Vendor's e-commerce site uses the PAO system totransfer the Item details (photo-description-price) to the PayAsOnecheck out process, where the Initiator can invite Contributors toparticipate with a portion of the total amount of the selected flowerarrangement. In another embodiment, PAO sends web links to Contributorsto provide the Item details. In another embodiment, PAO merely providesa text field for the Initiator to describe the Item. In fact, it is notnecessary for PAO to communicate anything about the transaction to theContributors. However, unless the Initiator otherwise communicates Itemdetails to the Contributors, the Contributors may not elect toparticipate in paying for the item. In another embodiment, a network ofmerchant vendors is associated with the PAO system, and the Item detailsmay simply refer to the various members of the merchant vendor networkthrough which a gift certificate may be redeemed.

As shown in FIG. 2, PAO 206 separately deals with Initiator 202 and eachContributor 208 to secure payments for the Item. PAO starts with a checkout page for the Initiator. At check out, the Initiator determines theportion he or she will pay. In one embodiment, the PAO check out isstructured as a secure (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standardcompliant, or PCI DSS compliant, or just PCI compliant) process wherePayAsOne holds the Initiator and each Contributor credit cardinformation until the total amount is committed, either by the PAOsystem collecting the needed amount of funds, or the PAO systemreserving sufficient funds from each of the Initiator and Contributorsto purchase the Item. In another embodiment, PAO system may beintegrated with a PCI compliant payment processor (“Payment Processor,”not shown) where funds are reserved until the total amount is aggregatedthen processed.

In one embodiment, the Initiator may add a personal note to be includedin the delivery of the Item of the recipient of the Item, and may add apersonal note to the Contributors explaining the situation. At the pointthe Initiator invokes the PAO system, the PAO system prompts theInitiator to identify the potential Contributors. In one embodiment, theInitiator identifies Contributors by entering e-mail addresses of thepotential joint purchaser(s) and may add a note explaining thepurchase—the requested contribution to the total amount—and requireddate for payment. The system will email the individual(s) identified bythe Initiator as noted above, and may include the note from theInitiator and provide a link to the reserved item in the PayAsOneholding cart. The e-mail may also contain a username and generates aunique password for each requested Contributor, so that the second timethe Contributor is invited to participate in a purchase by PAO, theprocess may be streamlined. In addition, the Initiator may specify atime deadline for participation, and may also set a follow up schedulefor PAO to continue to send further e-mails to prompt action bypotential Contributors. In one embodiment, once the Initiator hasselected a time constraint, PAO automatically generates a series ofreminder messages which increase in frequency as the time deadlineapproaches.

When the Contributor receives an invitation to participate in thepurchase of an Item, Contributor may follow a link back to the PayAsOnepayment processing site where he or she may sign in and see the item,note from the Initiator and requested amount, or range of amounts, topay. Each Contributor is also provided an option to decline, and PAO maynotify the Initiator if there is a decline. If not declined, PAO mayaccept credit card information in order to reserve the specified amountby the Contributor. Credit card or other payment information may be heldin reserve until all funds for the total amount of the item is secured.In another embodiment of the invention, once an Initiator or aContributor commits funds, PAO may process the payment and hold partialfunds in the form of point until the needed funds are raised.Contributors may also add a personal note to be included in the deliveryof the Item. Further, Contributors may be provided an input section orpage to designate further potential Contributors, thus allowing aContributor to also become an Initiator. This viral marketing approachmay greatly enhance the ability to obtain significant commitments. Thesoftware may further check newly accepted Contributor contactinformation against Contributor contact information already received totry to avoid sending a duplicative participation message. Detectedduplicative contact information may either be omitted from a furtherparticipation message, or the participation message sent to thisduplicative contact may be modified because of the awareness of thestatus.

In the example of a flower order, the Flower industry typically has alimit on the length of notes (e.g., 200 characters, 270 characters forsuch notes). PAO makes it possible to combine multiple notes and sendeach such note separately, or send all notes to the Initiator and letthe Initiator decide on the portions of the notes to deliver to Itemrecipient. Alternatively, PAO may separately deliver notes to the Itemrecipient apart from the flower delivery by the flower vendor.

PAO provides a monitoring page (not shown). With this monitoring page,Initiator or others may view the master account which provides updates,notification of commitments and payments made (and who made them). ThePAO monitoring page has the capability to send reminders, changeContributors or edit Contributor information, delete Contributors, andor make additional commitments or payments to complete the sale of theItem. Initiator or another designee may also be sent regular e-mailupdates and reminders depending on the preferred ship date of the itemand status of contributing commitments or payments. Further, whereContributors have become initiators, the monitor page may provide foridentifying new members of the Initiator/Contributor list in thecomputer memory. If one or more of the proposed Contributors declines,the Initiator may add further potential Contributors. Another option isthat the Initiator may increase the amount the Initiator commits to thepayment for the Item, thus reducing or eliminating the need for furthercontributors. In one embodiment, where the Initiator maintains contactwith Contributors via a social network or similar communications system,the Initiator may send reminders to other Contributors by a textmessage, instant message, poke or similar communications mechanism.

When total amount needed to purchase the Item is committed, PAO thenprocesses the individual payment mechanisms, e.g., credit cardtransactions or transfer of accumulated points, for all Contributors whoparticipated. In the case of using an outside payment processor (notshown), PAO would supply final approval to authorize the outside paymentprocessor process the credit cards. When full payment is committed andpayments are processed all joint purchasers may receive a receiptindicating their participation (details of their individual invoice)and, optionally, notification of shipping of the Item. As typicallypayment information is sensitive, such payment information may beomitted entirely from the receipt. Optionally, an abbreviated indicationof the payment mechanism may be provided on the receipt.

To complete the transaction, the PAO system generates a final orderapproval and sends notification back to the e-commerce site Vendor.Optionally, the PAO system may aggregate the notes from each Contributorto a form, a note or card to be included in the delivery of the Item tothe recipient. Alternatively, the PAO system may separately providenotes from the Initiator and/or Contributors.

In a conventional manner, payments to the e-commerce site are remittedto the Vendor, minus standard processing fees, either electronically orby monthly reconciliation. Optionally, PAO system may include a fee inthe transaction costs and receive payments through such mechanisms.

In an additional embodiment of the present invention, PAO transacts withInitiators and/or Contributors using a point based system. In thisembodiment, the Initiator and Contributors transact business usingpoints rather than money to provide the consideration to the vendor foreach Item. Such points used within the PAO system may be pointsaccumulated in loyalty programs, or other point systems where the pointsrepresent some monetary value (e.g., rewards on credit cards, airlinemiles, pre-paid cell phone minutes, etc.). In some of these embodiments,points may be acquired by purchasing with money, where the Initiatorand/or Contributor commits funds to PAO, which PAO transacts andprovides the points to the Initiator or Contributor based on the amountreceived by PAO. Such transaction cost adjustments described above maybe made in the initial creation of points, or may be implemented withthe final transaction.

To the extent that other individuals or organizations recognize thevalue of the points used within the PAO system, such points may be usedfor other (non-group) purchases or other group purchases. For purposesof the present invention, in these point system embodiments the PAOsystem is used by vendors that are willing to trade products and/orservices for its Items. Thus, the use of points may be thought of as twotransactions, a first transaction between PAO and the Initiator andContributors wherein points are obtained by PAO with the promise PAOwill deliver the Item for the specific amount of points. The secondtransaction is then PAO providing consideration (e.g., providing funds)to the vendor for the vendor supplying the Item. Using such a pointbased system, transactions may be split amongst vendors, and in the caseof a network of merchant vendors any refunds may be applied to any ofthe merchant vendors in the network.

This first transaction may be the purchase of points by the Initiatorand/or Contributors, and the subsequent commitment of the necessaryamount of Points by the Initiator and/or Contributors to PAO to get anItem. Alternatively, the Initiator and/or Contributors may transferpoints from other accounts, either accounts with PAO or outsideaccounts. For example, PAO may have arrangements with various otherentities to provide a valuation of points transferred by the Initiatorand/or Contributors from those third party systems. Such points wouldnot necessarily even need to represent money, although the typicalvendor would only transact with money before delivering an Item.However, in the event that a vendor would consider PAO points as validconsideration for shipping an Item, then this embodiment of the presentinvention would be capable of properly processing such a transaction.

In one embodiment, PAO may have each PAO point equal one dollar.Initiators and/or Contributors may purchase PAO points by providing onedollar for each point. Alternatively, an Initiator and/or Contributormay transfer, for example, airline miles to PAO for PAO points. With aparticular airline, PAO may have an agreement to value the airlinepoints at an exchange rate that works for both parties, in one examplePAO may obtain fifty cents for each airline point from the airline, sothat when an Initiator and/or Contributor transfers in 1000 airlinepoints, PAO redeems the airline points for 500 dollars and provides theInitiator and/or Contributors with a credit of 500 PAO points. In thepoint system embodiments, funds do not need to be reserved as in thecredit card situation as PAO uses its points as currency in itspurchasing system. PAO would be the party directly obtaining the Itemfrom the vendor based on value, funds, transferred to it during thepurchase or transfer of points.

FIG. 3A is a high-level block diagram of a computing environment 1200according to one embodiment. FIG. 3A illustrates server 1210 and threeclients 1212 connected by network 1214. Only three clients 1212 areshown in FIG. 3A in order to simplify and clarify the description.Embodiments of the computing environment 100 may have thousands ormillions of clients 1212 connected to network 1214, for example theInternet. Users (not shown) may operate software 1216 on one of clients1212 to both send and receive messages through network 1214 via server1210 and its associated communications equipment and software (notshown). PAO 206 is susceptible of operating from any such server 1210,and Vendor 204, Initiator(s) 202, and Contributor(s) 208 may allinteract via one of clients 1212.

FIG. 3B depicts a block diagram of computer system 210 suitable forimplementing server 1210 or client 1212. Computer system 210 includesbus 212 which interconnects major subsystems of computer system 210,such as central processor 214, system memory 217 (typically RAM, butwhich may also include ROM, flash RAM, or the like), input/outputcontroller 218, external audio device, such as speaker system 220 viaaudio output interface 222, external device, such as display screen 224via display adapter 226, serial ports 228 and 230, keyboard 232(interfaced with keyboard controller 233), storage interface 234, diskdrive 237 operative to receive floppy disk 238, host bus adapter (HBA)interface card 235A operative to connect with Fibre Channel network 290,host bus adapter (HBA) interface card 235B operative to connect to SCSIbus 239, and optical disk drive 240 operative to receive optical disk242. Also included are mouse 246 (or other point-and-click device,coupled to bus 212 via serial port 228), modem 247 (coupled to bus 212via serial port 230), and network interface 248 (coupled directly to bus212).

Bus 212 allows data communication between central processor 214 andsystem memory 217, which may include read-only memory (ROM) or flashmemory (neither shown), and random access memory (RAM) (not shown), aspreviously noted. RAM is generally the main memory into which operatingsystem and application programs are loaded. ROM or flash memory maycontain, among other software code, Basic Input-Output system (BIOS)which controls basic hardware operation such as interaction withperipheral components. Applications resident with computer system 210are generally stored on and accessed via computer readable media, suchas hard disk drives (e.g., fixed disk 244), optical drives (e.g.,optical drive 240), floppy disk unit 237, or other storage medium.Additionally, applications may be in the form of electronic signalsmodulated in accordance with the application and data communicationtechnology when accessed via network modem 247 or interface 248 or othertelecommunications equipment (not shown).

Storage interface 234, as with other storage interfaces of computersystem 210, may connect to standard computer readable media for storageand/or retrieval of information, such as fixed disk drive 244. Fixeddisk drive 244 may be part of computer system 210 or may be separate andaccessed through other interface systems. Modem 247 may provide directconnection to remote servers via telephone link or the Internet via aninternet service provider (ISP) (not shown). Network interface 248 mayprovide direct connection to remote servers via direct network link tothe Internet via a POP (point of presence). Network interface 248 mayprovide such connection using wireless techniques, including digitalcellular telephone connection, Cellular Digital Packet Data (CDPD)connection, digital satellite data connection or the like.

Many other devices or subsystems (not shown) may be connected in asimilar manner (e.g., document scanners, digital cameras and so on).Conversely, all of the devices shown in FIG. 3B need not be present topractice the present disclosure. Devices and subsystems may beinterconnected in different ways from that shown in FIG. 3B. Operationof a computer system such as that shown in FIG. 3B is readily known inthe art and is not discussed in detail in this application. Softwaresource and/or object codes to implement the present disclosure may bestored in computer-readable storage media such as one or more of systemmemory 217, fixed disk 244, optical disk 242, or floppy disk 238. Theoperating system provided on computer system 210 may be a variety orversion of either MS-DOS® (MS-DOS is a registered trademark of MicrosoftCorporation of Redmond, Wash.), WINDOWS® (WINDOWS is a registeredtrademark of Microsoft Corporation of Redmond, Wash.), OS/2® (OS/2 is aregistered trademark of International Business Machines Corporation ofArmonk, N.Y.), UNIX® (UNIX is a registered trademark of X/Open CompanyLimited of Reading, United Kingdom), Linux® (Linux is a registeredtrademark of Linus Torvalds of Portland, Oreg.), or other known ordeveloped operating system.

Moreover, regarding the signals described herein, those skilled in theart recognize that a signal may be directly transmitted from a firstblock to a second block, or a signal may be modified (e.g., amplified,attenuated, delayed, latched, buffered, inverted, filtered, or otherwisemodified) between blocks. Although the signals of the above describedembodiments are characterized as transmitted from one block to the next,other embodiments of the present disclosure may include modified signalsin place of such directly transmitted signals as long as theinformational and/or functional aspect of the signal is transmittedbetween blocks. To some extent, a signal input at a second block may beconceptualized as a second signal derived from a first signal outputfrom a first block due to physical limitations of the circuitry involved(e.g., there will inevitably be some attenuation and delay). Therefore,as used herein, a second signal derived from a first signal includes thefirst signal or any modifications to the first signal, whether due tocircuit limitations or due to passage through other circuit elementswhich do not change the informational and/or final functional aspect ofthe first signal.

While this invention has been described as having an exemplary design,the present invention may be further modified within the spirit andscope of this disclosure. This application is therefore intended tocover any variations, uses, or adaptations of the invention using itsgeneral principles. Further, this application is intended to cover suchdepartures from the present disclosure as come within known or customarypractice in the art to which this invention pertains.

1. A server for accommodating multiple party payments for a single itemin an e-commerce transaction, said server comprising: a processor with acommunications device; vendor software module capable of execution onsaid processor, said vendor software module adapted to receive paymentrequirements from a vendor via said communications device, and toreceive payment parameters from an initiator via said communicationsdevice, said payment parameters including an item payment amount and anidentification of at least one contributor; contributor software modulecapable of execution on said processor, said contributor software moduleadapted to obtain payment information from at least two of the initiatorand the at least one contributor wherein said payment information issufficient to authorize the commitment of points to a transaction; andaggregation software module capable of execution on said processor, saidaggregation software module adapted to send a participation message viasaid communications device to at least one contributor, saidparticipation message including information on the item, the itempayment amount, and directions for the contributor to interact with saidcontributor software module, said aggregation software module furthermaintaining a total of committed points and initiating a paymenttransaction when the committed points are sufficient to pay the vendorthe item payment amount.
 2. The server of claim 1 wherein said vendorsoftware module further includes a contributor designator softwaremodule enabling said contributor software module to collect a pluralityof contributor identifiers, said contributor identifiers including atleast two of: a telephone number, a website user name, a social networkuser name, a user identifier from a known computer system, a financialinstitution account identifier, a rewards program identifier, and afrequent flyer program identifier.
 3. The server of claim 1 wherein saidcontributor software module further includes communication softwaremodule for enabling said processor to communicate with said contributorsthrough at least two of the following communications channels: a localcomputer network, a wireless network, a wide area network, a wirelessnetwork, an electronic telephony network, radio, microwave, othertelecommunications, a conventional voice telephony network, a retailoutlet, and a paper based communication.
 4. The server of claim 1wherein said contributor software module further includes individualmessage software module enabling said processor to allow at least one ofthe initiator and a contributor to enter an individual message for atleast one contributor.
 5. The server of claim 1 wherein said aggregationsoftware module further includes monitor software module for enablingsaid processor to display the current status of each contributor.
 6. Theserver of claim 4 wherein said aggregation software module furtherenables the initiator to send a message to one of the contributors. 7.The server of claim 4 wherein said aggregation software module furtherincludes software enabling said processor to automatically send remindermessages to one of the contributors according to a predeterminedcriteria.
 8. The server of claim 1 wherein said contributor softwaremodule further includes software enabling said processor to acceptcontact information in conjunction with obtaining payment information,and providing the accepted contact information to the aggregationsoftware module to send further participation messages.
 9. The server ofclaim 8 wherein said contributor software module further includessoftware for detecting accepted contact information which has previouslybeen sent a participation message.
 10. A method for accommodatingmultiple party payments for a single item in an e-commerce transaction,said method comprising the steps of: obtaining payment requirements froma vendor via a communications device of a computer, including obtainingpayment parameters from an initiator via the communications device, thepayment parameters including an item payment amount and anidentification of at least one contributor; obtaining paymentinformation from at least two of the initiator and the at least onecontributor via a communications device of the computer, wherein thepayment information is sufficient to authorize the commitment of pointsto a transaction; sending a participation message via the communicationsdevice of the computer to at least one contributor, the participationmessage including information on the item, the item payment amount, anddirections for the contributor to interact with the computer; andmaintaining a total of committed points and initiating a paymenttransaction when the committed points are sufficient to pay the vendorthe item payment amount.
 11. The method of claim 10 wherein saidobtaining vendor requirements further includes collecting a plurality ofcontributor identifiers, said contributor o including at least two of: atelephone number, a website user name, a social network user name, auser identifier from a known computer system, a financial institutionaccount identifier, a rewards program identifier, and a frequent flyerprogram identifier.
 12. The method of claim 10 wherein said step ofobtaining payment information further includes communicating with thecontributors through at least one of the following communicationschannels: a local computer network, a wireless network, a wide areanetwork, a wireless network, an electronic telephony network, radio,microwave, other telecommunications, a conventional voice telephonynetwork, a retail outlet, and a paper based communication.
 13. Themethod of claim 10 wherein said obtaining payment information stepfurther includes allowing the initiator to enter an individual messagefor at least one contributor.
 14. The method of claim 10 wherein saidmaintaining step further includes displaying the current status of eachcontributor.
 15. The method of claim 14 wherein said maintaining stepfurther allows at least one of the initiator and a contributor to send amessage to one of the contributors.
 16. The method of claim 14 whereinsaid maintaining step further includes automatically sending remindermessages to one of the contributors according to a predeterminedcriteria.
 17. The method of claim 14 wherein said obtaining step furtherincludes the steps of accepting contact information in conjunction withobtaining payment information, and providing the accepted contactinformation to a computer software module to send further participationmessages.
 18. The method of claim 17 wherein said providing stepincludes detecting accepted contact information which has previouslybeen sent a participation message.
 19. Computer readable media storing aplurality of instructions for enabling a computer to perform thefollowing method for accommodating multiple party payments for a singleitem in an e-commerce transaction which comprises the steps of:obtaining payment requirements from a vendor via a communications deviceof a computer, including obtaining payment parameters from an initiatorvia the communications device, the payment parameters including an itempayment amount and an identification of at least one contributor;obtaining payment information from at least two of the initiator and theat least one contributor via a communications device of the computer,wherein the payment information is sufficient to authorize thecommitment of points to a transaction; sending a participation messagevia the communications device of the computer to at least onecontributor, the participation message including information on theitem, the item payment amount, and directions for the contributor tointeract with the computer; and maintaining a total of committed pointsand initiating a payment transaction when the committed points aresufficient to pay the vendor the item payment amount.
 20. The media ofclaim 19 wherein said method step of obtaining vendor requirementsfurther includes collecting a plurality of contributor identifiers, saidcontributor o including at least two of: a telephone number, a websiteuser name, a social network user name, a user identifier from a knowncomputer system, a financial institution account identifier, a rewardsprogram identifier, and a frequent flyer program identifier.
 21. Themedia of claim 19 wherein said method step of obtaining paymentinformation further includes communicating with the contributors throughat least one of the following communications channels: a local computernetwork, a wireless network, a wide area network, a wireless network, anelectronic telephony network, radio, microwave, othertelecommunications, a conventional voice telephony network, a retailoutlet, and a paper based communication.
 22. The media of claim 19wherein said method step of obtaining payment information further anincludes allowing the initiator to enter an individual message for atleast one contributor.
 23. The media of claim 19 wherein said methodstep of maintaining further includes displaying the current status ofeach contributor.
 24. The media of claim 23 wherein said method step ofmaintaining further allows at least one of the initiator and acontributor to send a message to one of the contributors.
 25. The mediaof claim 23 wherein said method step of maintaining further includesautomatically sending reminder messages to one of the contributorsaccording to a predetermined criteria.
 26. The media of claim 19 whereinsaid method step of obtaining step further includes the steps ofaccepting contact information in conjunction with obtaining paymentinformation, and providing the accepted contact information to acomputer software module to send further participation messages.
 27. Themedia of claim 26 wherein said method step of providing step includesdetecting accepted contact information which has previously been sent aparticipation message.